Advertising apparatus



jam.. 22, w29. L69989 NJ. CURRY ADVERTISING APPARATUS Filed Aug. l1, 1925 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR Malcom w'gf',

ATTORNEYS lll Patented Jan. 22, 1929.

ENT OFFICE.

MALCOLM CURBY, 0F SCABSDALE, NEW YORK.

ADVERTISING APPARATUS.

Application led August 11, 1925. Serial No. 49,660.

This invention relates 'to advertising apparatus and it has for an object the provision of simple and edective means for so creating an opti-cal illusion of the device or goods to be advertised that a real image of said device or goods will appear to be the actual thing in space and unsupported.

A further object of the invention is to create a real image of reading matter with said inatter so arranged in the image as to be in readable form. 'lhis is accomplished by producing the matter in reverse so that the reflection constituting the image will correct the reverse arrangement of the matter and present it to the observer in readable form. Where advertising matter is printed directly on the device or goods to be advertised such printed matter is in reverse torni in order that it shall be corrected and in readable form in the image.

ln the drawings:

lliig. l is a perspective view showing in y advertising apparatus operatively positioned in a show window;

2 a vertical section taken through the show window and the advertising apparatus;

` lig. 3 a horizontal section taken on the line 3-3 of ldig. 2;

Fig. a a perspective view oit the object to be advertised; 0

llig. 5 a view of the image ot said object created by the apparatus; and

Fig. 6 a view showing the two slldes for regulating the projection oflight upon the object in creatine' the image.

Referring to the parts by numerals, 1 designates an elongated casing adapted to be mounted within a show Window, W. Located back of the box l within the window enclosure is a concave mirror 2. IThe casing l is preterably positioned upon the floor el the window enclosure and extends throughout substantially the width ot the window adjacent the front glass 3. The casing is entirely closed on all sides except at the rear where it is centrally formed with an opening 4 directed toward the mirror. The inner walls of the casing are blackened to absorb light. Projecting into the box from theV front wall thereol are a pair of rearwardly converging vertical walls 5 which forni a salient directedu toward the mirror in transverse line with the center of the opening fl. lUpon the end ot the salient the object 7 to be advertised is 4supported by a pin or wire 8. ln the present instance the obi, 18; At the inner side ject 7 is in the form of a cigarette package with several cigarettes secured to and protruding from it. One side of the package, facing the mirror, is provided with printed advertising captions 9. 'lhese captions are printed in reverse, as shown in Fig. l.

A pair of light-projecting lanterns l0 are mounted within the casing l adjacent opposite sides oi' the opening t and rearwardly of the object 7. Each lantern comprises a casing ll enclosing a lamp l2 and light-project ing means including spaced lenses 13 and ll. These lenses are directed toward the object and an opaque slide or screen l5 is slidably mounted in the space between them. |This slide is 'formed with an aperture 16 contorining in outline to the contour of the object as viewed :troni the position of that particular screen. -l`he size of this aperture and the location oi the screen with relation to the object are such as to confine the light-projection solely to the object. This prevents the illuinination of the inner walls of the casing and thus the possibility of the retlected rays from said walls reaching the mirror is avoided.

'lhe concave mirror 2 is uniformly curved in all directions so that its reiiecting surface conforms to the surface of a sphere and thc mirror would accurately receive and fit over a portion of a sphere of a radius equal to the radius or' curvature of the mirror. Such a inirror is adapted to produce a real image located in front oi its redeeting surface when the object is positioned outside of the focus ot the mirror. ln the present instance the object is located at a distance trom the mirror substantially equal to its radius of curvature and the mirror is slightly tilted so that it faces outwardly over the top of the casing l and through the window. The mirror will theretore produce an image located over the casing and et the saine size as the object, as shown in Fig. 2. rl`he image will be reversed both vertically and horizontally from the object 7 and the advertising captions will be presented thereon in readable form as shown in Fig. 5. The illusion of a package of cigarettes unsupported in the air will thus be created.

rllhe upper edge of the mirror is preferably concealed by a curtain 17 draped to conform to the curvature of said' edge and the side edges of the mirror are concealed by curtains ot the window glass 3 side curtains 19 are also draped. 'lhese curtill tains 19 conceal the ends of the casing and also confine the zone of vision through the window to the visibility zone of the image, as determined by the arrangement of the object and the mirror.

The arrangement described and shown in the drawings insures the production of a clean-cut, distinct image. The manner of concentrating and projecting light upon the object contributes greatly to this result. The angular arrangement of the objcct-support ing walls 5 is such as to prevent rays of light which may fall upon them from being rellected out through the opening 4 to the mirror. This arrangement of said walls, and the blackening of all of the inside walls of the casing so as to absorb. light, create a dark background against which the illuminated object is vividly contrasted as viewed from the mirror.

It will be understood that the arran ement disclosed is susceptible of certain c anges without departing from the spirit of the 1nvention. The reversely printed advertising may, for example, be mounted otherwise than upon the object advertised. The object and the mirror may also be so relatively positioned as to change the location of the image from that shown. If desired, by properly locating the object between the focus of the mirror and its center of curvature, an enlarged ima e may be made to appear outside of the window over the sidewalk.

What I claim is:

1. An advertising apparatus comprising an object, concave ,spherical mirror means exposed to said object andlocated at a distance from it greater than the focal length of the mirror means, a pair of light sources located at opposite sides o the object and between the object and the mirror, means to concentrate light rays from each of said sources and direct them upon surfaces of the object exposed to the mirror, and an opaque screen located between each light source and the ob- `ect, each of said screens having an area adapted to admit li ht through it, said area being similar in out ine to the contour of the object as viewed from the position of the screen, whereby illumination from said sources' is confined 'within the contours of the object, the said mirror means being adapted to form a real image of the object.

2. An advertising apparatus comprising an object, concave spherical mirror Ameans exposed te said object and located at a distance from it greater than the focal length of the mirror means, a light source, means to concentrate light rays from said source and direct them toward the object, and an opaque screen located between the said light source and object, said screen having an area adapted to admit lig similar in outline to the contour of the object as viewed from the position of the screen,

ht through it, said area being whereby said screen will confine the illumination from the screen within the said contour of the object, the said mirror means bc ing ada ted to form a real image of the 0bject in ront of the mirror means.

3. An advertising apparatus comprising an object, concave spherical mirror means exposed to said object and located at a distance from it greater than the focal length of the mirror means, an advertising caption carried by the object and facing toward the mirror means, the said caption having its lettering Iarranged. in reverse order, a pair of light sources located at opposite sides of the object and between the object and the miror means, means to concentrate light rays from each of said sources and direct them toward the object, a pair of opaque screens each located between one of the light sources and the object, each screen having an area adapted to admit light through it, said area being similar in outline to the contour of the object as viewed from the position of the screen, whereby the illumination from the light sources will be conned within the contours of the object, and means forming a light-absorbing background or said object as viewed from the mirror means, said mirror means bein adapted to form a real image of the object m front of the mirror means.

4. An advertising apparatus comprising a concave spherical mirror; an object in the form of a commercial article exposed to said mirror and located at a distance from it greater than the focal length of the mirror; an advertising caption carried by the object and facing the mirror, said caption having its lettering arrangedin reverse order with relation to the object and the body of the cap- Y concave spherical mirror; an object' in the.

form of a commercial article exposed to said mirror and located at a distance. from it greater than the focal length of the mirror; an vadvertising caption directly upon the object and .facingthe mirror,"said caption havits lettering arranged in reverse order with relation to the object and the body of the captionas viewed from the mirror; a light source to v illuminate said object; and an opaque screen having an area adapted to admit the passage of light through it, said `area being similar in outline to the contour of the object as viewed from the position of the screen, whereby illumination from saidA source is confined Within the said contour of the object. p

6; An advertising apparatus comprising a show window with a :front glass panel; a lconcave spherical mirror spaced back of said panel and facing outward through it; an object in the form of a commercial article exposed to said mirror and Vlocatedbetween the .mirror and the panel at a distance from the mirror greater than the focal distance thereof; an advertising caption directly upon the object and facing the mirror, said caption having its lettering arranged in reverse order with relation to the object and the body of the caption as viewed from the mirror;

'means .back ofthe window panel to illuminate the object; means concealing the object and said illuminating means from view through the window anel; the mirror being disposed and directe to produce a real ima e of substantially the same size as the arti e advertised at a point back of the panel and visible therethrough in a position offset from said obj ect-concealing means, and the caption upon the object being so designed and placed upon the'object that said image will present the characteristic appearance of the commercial article advertised; and means to prevent the appearance of the object-concealing means in said real image.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aix my signature. g

MALCOLM CURRY. 

